One In A Million
by Shadow2700
Summary: Hopefully you enjoy it. I don't own Naruto. NaruSaku. Updated


The rain poured down with an intense force causing everyone to run for cover in their homes and under various stands to wait out the downpour. But the cold blowing wind caused the rain to feel much heavier on anyone unlucky enough to face its wrath, sending the feeling of a million kunai onto their skin.

It was no surprise though to find Naruto in the midst of the rain, walking no less. He knew that he was cold but also knew his 'captive' helped him fight anything like the cold or flu, so he decided to simply walk to his new home on the east side of the village that had been built special for him as a reward for his role in saving the world. Being the savoir of the world and ending the 4th Great Shinobi War did have its rewards.

Naruto smiled at the accomplishments that he had achieved, thinking of how fortunate he was to have all the praise that he had always wanted. His thoughts however had been torn when he heard a strange sound in the alleyway to his right. He stopped in the middle of the street and poked his head into the narrow space to see if he could see anything. Out of his curiosity, Naruto decided to walk down the alley to see what the sound might have been. He slowly walked along the walls, hands in his pockets while turning his head to look for anything unusual. With his kunai ready to strike, he continued to keep his eyes wary. He heard movement from one of the boxes to his right. Slowly, he began to move towards one of the moving containers.

"Konohamru, if that's you in there, I'm going to knock you into next week." Naruto warned as he moved his hand to the box. "This is your last chance to come out before I knock you senseless."

"Please don't hurt me!" A voice shouted from the box…but it wasn't Konohamru's. It sounded more to that of a little girl. Naruto stowed away his kunai and gently lifted the box to reveal a little girl. She was covered in scrapes and bruises while the rest of her body was covered by old tattered clothes, which were know becoming soaked by the rain.

"Please mister, don't…don't hurt me!" she begged as she looked up at Naruto. "Please!"

Naruto's heart began to break as he saw the child shiver, in fear and coldness, her dark brown hair covered in mud and water. His mind began to play back all the years that he was cold and alone. The memories shook at his foundations. He knew that this girl had suffered greatly even when she didn't deserve it. Naruto could have wondered how she had survived without any parents, but coming from the same background, he already knew that she must have had a strong heart.

"Hey now, don't worry, I'm not going to hurt you." Naruto spoke gently through his smile, while setting himself on his knees. "My names Naruto, what's yours?" he asked. The girl hesitated a little, obviously though since she was sitting underneath a box in an alley and probably didn't trust a lot of people. Eventually though, she slowly began to talk.

"It's…it's Kara…Kara Yamachi." she answered now a bit more relaxed. Naruto smiled and lifted the box over her and tossed it to the side in the alley way. He then took off his jacket and placed it over top of her fragile head to cover her from the soaking rain.

"Well, it's nice to meet you Kara" Naruto replied, still in his gentle voice. "May I ask, but why are you sitting all alone in an alley way like this?" Again, the girl was hesitant to answer.

"I…I…I don't have a home to go to. I've lived by myself for a long time now." she answered quietly as she played with the hems of the jacket. Naruto looked at her with his sad eyes as he realized that he and this girl truly were like one another. He offered her his hand as he looked at her.

"Kara, do you want to come with me for a while, dry off and have a hot meal? You shouldn't be out here in the cold rain." Naruto asked as he awaited the girl's response. He watched as the child was slow to respond but she eventually nodded and accepted his hand, still hesitant.

"It's okay Kara; you can trust me…because you and I have a lot more in common." Naruto reassured her. This seemed to work as she finally grasped his hands firmly. Naruto took his left arm and hand and lifted Kara off the ground and into his arms

"Wait…aren't you going get cold now if I'm wearing your jacket?" she asked with concern.

"No, I'll be fine, I really don't get colds." Naruto answered back with a smile. "Okay now, hold on, this'll be a quick trip. He made a hand sign that his father was known for, instantly arriving inside the bedroom of his home.

"What? How did you do that?" Kara asked in amazement as Naruto set her down on his bed.

"It's a little trick that I learned a few years ago, something that my father instilled in my family." Naruto replied as he began to look for his old cloths that he wore as child.

"Who was your dad then?" the child asked as she looked around the bedroom taking in its offerings of beige color. It was now Naruto who hesitated to answer.

"Um…listen, I'll answer that for you another time, but, it's still a little hard for me to talk about. And out of respect, I won't ask about your family, unless you want to talk about them…okay?" Naruto asked as he found his old orange t-shirt and pants.

"Sure thing mister." the girl answered back as she looked at the clothes, amazed at their brightness. "Aren't those a little bright for a shinobi to wear?"

"Hey now, I wasn't defeated when I wore them and besides, they're the only thing I have that will fit you. And I must ask how you know what a shinobi is anyway." Naruto spoke as he sat down next to the bed and put an arm around her. "And you can call me Naruto by the way."

"Okay then, Naruto. I knew you were a shinobi because of the things that you did. The hand signs and the kunai you had as well kind of gave it off." she replied with a smile. Naruto was amazed at her ability to gather info so quickly.

"Guess I'm not a very good shinobi then if you could figure that all out. How old are you anyway?" he asked.

"I'm eight. How old are you Naruto and what rank are you?" Again, Naruto was amazed at her knowledge of the shinobi.

"I'm nineteen and I'm a Jounin, training to become the Hokage."

"Hokage? But doesn't that take a lot of years of hard work and training though?"

"It does, but I've been training for a long time now, around fifteen years or so and it helps when you've accomplished what I've done."

"Fifteen years? But that means you were only four at the time?" Kara's then began to look over Naruto, almost as if she was trying to piece together something that she knew. Her eyes then shot wide at him. "Wait a minute, I know you! You're the Naruto Uzumaki everyone talks about, The one that ended the war and saved all of us!"

'_Guess my name does spread to everyone like Tsunade said it would.' _Naruto smiled at the thought.

"Yes but…listen…why don't you go ahead and change out of those cold and wet clothes and I'll continue with my story." Naruto said as he handed her his old attire and helped find the bathroom. "If you want, I can run you a hot bath so you can wash up." Naruto suggested to his guest.

"Oh god yes! I'd love a bath; it's been so long since I've had one!" Kara screamed as she put her arms around Naruto's waist.

"Okay, okay. I guess you really want a bath then. Since you're eight, I figure that you want your privacy as well right?"

"Yeah…what kind of grown up asks that kind of thing?" Kara asked a little perplexed. Naruto sighed as he knelt back down to her level again. He figured that he may as well get this out of the way since she would know soon enough.

"Kara, remember how I said a little while ago how we had a lot in common?" Naruto asked as he placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Yeah?" she answered back, tilting her head to the side.

"Well…I never had parents growing up either Kara." Naruto answered as he looked at her with a sad expression on his face. Kara looked like she was going to cry now as she heard him speak.

"Kara, it's okay…you don't need to cry for me, but that's why I really didn't know if that was a normal thing, because I never had that experience. But…know I have someone to help me figure that out…well…someone else now."

"Who's the other person?" Kara asked as she rubbed her eyes away of tears.

"I'll tell you in a bit okay? Let's go ahead and get you a hot bath and some hot food too." Naruto answered with a smile, causing Kara to smile as well. It took Naruto only ten minutes to make the water in his tub comfortable for the little girl.

"OK then, let me make sure you've got everything that you need." Naruto looked to see if he had the essentials such as soap, shampoo, wash, cloth. "Yep, okay then, just shout if you need anything else okay. I'll be in the kitchen making you some good food for you to eat up on."

"Alright, thank you so much Naruto!" Kara answered back with a big smile as she entered the bathroom and shut the door to bathe in privacy. Naruto smiled as well before turning back into the kitchen and grabbing one of his containers of ramen.

'_Man, I really don't know what to do here. I suppose that I could take you to Tsunade…but still, I understand where this girl is coming from. We're both so much alike, we both lost our parents at such a young age, we've had to fight to stay alive, and we've had to live as peasants.'_Naruto sighed. '_I guess it can't be helped, but I can at least visit her if worse comes to worse.'_

Naruto was nearly finished with cooking the ramen when Kara came into the kitchen, wearing Naruto's old clothing. When she began to recognize the smell coming from the pot of boiling, she nearly leapt onto the table.

"Oh yes! Ramen! It's been so long since I've had that!" Kara squealed in absolute joy as she took a seat at the table. Naruto couldn't help but laugh.

"Hmm, I wonder if you my long lost sister of something. I haven't seen such an appetite for ramen since my own." Naruto joked as he placed the large bowl in front of her. "Don't eat too fast now, you don't want to overdo it and hurt yourself."

"Maybe you are my long lost brother since you like to order me around." Kara joked back as she took her chop sticks and began to devour the noodles. Around three bowls later she was finally full, with that, she and Naruto moved into the living and began to watch some television while relaxing on the coach. Kara's curiosity caused her look around the room and come across two photos sitting on his side tables. Naruto had noticed as well that the rain had finally stopped and that the sun was now shining brightly through the clouds.

"Naruto, who are those people in those pictures?" Kara pointed over to the old picture of Team 7, breaking Naruto out of his trance.

"Oh…well the one on the bottom is Sakura, the big guy on top is my sensei, Kakashi. The guy on the left…well…he's a lost friend of mine, his name is Sasuke." Naruto answered as he pointed out each individual person.

"Oh, but what do you mean lost?" Kara asked.

"Well…that's hard to talk about as well." Naruto answered quietly. Kara took notice and decided that it was best to leave the subject alone; instead she redirected her attention to the other picture sitting on the table, which showcased a seventeen year old Sakura at the time, standing over Naruto, her arms wrapped around his chest while she rested her chin on top of his head.

"I'm guessing that's Sakura and you as well." Kara pointed out the picture on the table.

"Yeah, that's us around…two years ago I believe." Naruto smiled.

"Are you two going out now?"

"Yeah, but it was a pain to get her to finally accept me as a boyfriend." Naruto laughed as he remembered some of the events that led her to finally realizing some of her feelings. A knock on the door however stopped his laughter. "Guess you get to meet her now; that should be Sakura right now. Wait here a second."

"Ok, Naruto." Kara answered as she sat back onto the couch. Naruto gave her a smile and a nod as he raised himself from his seat, walking down the hall and to his front door. Luckily, Kara was out of his sight so it would be easier to explain what was going on.

"Hey Naruto." Sakura greeted him with a hug and kiss as he opened the door. "You ready for our date tonight?" she asked him as she looked at his attire somewhat confused as he was still in his relaxation wear as he called it.

"Um….Sakura…this may not be the best time to go out." Naruto regretfully said as his expression became sad. He really did love enjoying time with his Sakura. His kunzite in question began to look at him suspiciously.

"Naruto, it's nice outside now and since we had this date scheduled anyway…wait…Naruto…what did you do? You don't cancel any of our dates for no reason." Sakura eyed him looking for the correct answer.

"Well…I…look just come here for a second." Naruto said waving his hand to where he was standing. "Look in the living room."

Sakura stepped towards her lover and looked around the corner carefully and felt her heart rate sky rocket. She saw Kara sitting on the couch laughing at something that happened on the television set. Sakura quietly gasped in shocked as she poked her head back behind the corner.

"Naruto, who, who is that little girl? What is she doing here with you?" Sakura asked as she let her heart rate come back to a normal rate. Naruto took a deep breath before beginning to speak.

"Well, I was walking home during the rain storm…when my attention was drawn to an alleyway. That's where I found Kara. Sakura, you have to understand, she's only eight and she doesn't have any parents to look after her and I just…I just…" Naruto tried to continue but Sakura simply silenced his lips with hers before breaking apart.

"Naruto…it's okay. I completely understand…this is why I love you Naruto. Taking in a helpless child and taking care of her is something that I expected from you, but what are we going to do about…Kara was it?" Sakura asked as she grasped his arms.

"Yes, it is Kara. And as far as what we are going to do…well, I'll take her to Tsunade and we can see what we can do, for now though, let's just try and keep her company and try to make her happy. Apparently, she wants to meet you." Sakura nodded in agreement and began to move with Naruto back to the living room.

"Kara, I like you to meet my girlfriend, Sakura Haruno." Naruto smiled as he presented her to the young child.

"Hello Sakura, I'm Kara." the child greeted cheerfully as Sakura walked over and sat down next to her. Sakura shook her hand and greeted equally. "It's nice to meet you too Kara. I hope you aren't stealing Naruto from me now."

"No…he's _way_too old for me. Plus, he looks like a bit of a goofball." Kara laughed in response. Sakura joined in with the laughter as well while Naruto simply looked in disbelief.

'_Figures that I have a girlfriend who teases me and that these two are the same. I got to get out of here and get some peace before the insults start. Time to make an excuse'_

"Hey you two, I've got to run to the store. I'm low on supplies so I'll be back in about ten minutes, ok?" Naruto asked to make sure it was okay with them.

"Yeah, yeah. Go ahead Naruto, I'll keep Kara company until you get back." Sakura said waving him away, but winked at him.

"Boy, don't I feel wanted." Naruto answered back sarcastically as he turned around and went to the local market to get some vegetables, fruits and other assorted goods.

"Sakura, why did you laugh with me when I make fun Naruto? Aren't you supposed to stand up for him? He is your boyfriend after all." Kara inquired with a cute look on her face.

"Well…Kara, our relationship has always been…complicated." Sakura tried to explain to her. Kara tilted her head questioning what she meant.

"What do mean complicated? Isn't supposed to be simpler than that?" she asked. Sakura couldn't believe it…this girl was the exact same when she was twelve, well, mostly.

'_Ohhhhh boy, guess I have to relive my past now.'_

"Unfortunately Kara, love is never simple. I once thought that love was just that…simple. I thought I knew what love was for a long time until a certain….event….happened and began to change my relationship with Naruto." Sakura answered, hoping she wouldn't have to go any farther than that.

"What event?" she instantly asked.

'_Damn it!'_

"Kara…I guess I better start from the beginning if you want to understand what happened." Sakura answered. Kara sat straight up and placed her hands in her lap ready to listen. Sakura took a deep breath and began.

"Well, when I was around five or six, I began to notice Naruto around the Shinobi Academy and I actually thought that he was kind of cute. I also began to wonder if Naruto was friends with any other girls, that part I blame on my jealously issues."

That response caused Kara to laugh.

"But when I began to think about talking to him, I noticed that a lot of the others called Naruto names like 'Monster' and 'Demon'. So I asked my parents why they all called him names and they told me that I needed to stay away from him. I didn't know any better, so I just went with it, even though I didn't think anything was wrong with him."

Eventually, Sakura was able to explain all the events leading up to her infatuation with Sasuke, his departure, Naruto's departure and return and all the events that led up to the beginning of Naruto and Sakura's relationship.

"So…you used to pick on Naruto huh? But why treat him like that? I'm mean, he's so kind." Kara stated after the story was told. Sakura sighed quietly as she thought that same question to herself.

"Kara…the only way I can put this is that I was blind to what was in front of me, without using horrible words in front of you. If you were older, I could tell you in a much more….detailed reason why I was like that." Sakura answered back.

"Well, at least you're together with Naruto now." Kara smiled.

Sakura smiled back as well. "Yeah, at least we're together now." Their attention was turned to the front door suddenly opening to reveal Naruto carrying in two big bags of supplies, sweating from the sudden increase of humidity that the rain brought with it.

"Whew, the line was absolutely ridiculous at the stores and the heat only made it worse!" Naruto called out after making his way to the kitchen. Sakura and Kara soon joined him and took seats at the table.

"That's okay Naruto. Kara and I were just talking while we were waiting for you." Sakura smiled as she crossed her legs and placed her elbow on the table so her hand could hold her head up.

"Oh really? What did you talk about?" Naruto asked as he took out the food and began to chop some vegetables up. Sakura and Kara looked at each other warily.

"Oh, just….girl stuff, you know." Sakura replied back, not wanting to upset Naruto.

"Let me guess, you don't want me to know what it was right?" Naruto laughed, causing the girls to get concerned, but their fears were subsided. "That's fine. It's none of my business anyway." Naruto continued as he began to cut the precooked meat.

'_Whew….dodge a bullet there.'_Sakura thought.

"Listen, I couldn't cook a real good meal on such short notice, so unfortunately, we're all going to have to settle for a good meal, just not cooked by me." Naruto laughed as he began to set the plates on the table.

"It's okay, I'm not sure if I could stand one of your meals." Sakura joked with a laugh.

"Joke all you want Sakura, you love my meals and you know it." Naruto said as he began to place the meal on the plates.

"Yeah, I know. I just like to tease you." she replied while winking at Kara.

"Old habits die hard with you don't they Sakura?" Naruto jokingly asked while placing portions of delicious food onto the three plates. "Well girls, eat up."

Night had come quickly, bringing with it a calm setting as the stars were out bright tonight as well as a full moon to brighten the village without any secondary help. It was now ten-thirty and Kara was fast asleep now on the chair next to the couch that was in the living room. Naruto was also fast asleep on the edge of the couch, clearly exhausted from the day's events. Sakura however was wide awake, unable to sleep as she thought about the conversation that she had with the young girl.

'_It isn't like I haven't had these thoughts before. I've done this so many times, relived the guilt…but tonight, it's just…on a completely different level. I need some air.'_

Sakura rose from her seat as quietly as possible as to not wake Naruto or Kara. She walked down the hallway to the kitchen and exited out of the back door, quietly closing the door. She proceeded to leap up onto the tree and then onto the roof of Naruto's home, found the small futon contained in a secret compartment by the ventilation system, and set it up so she could lie down and watch the stairs.

'_Why did I say all those things to him? Why did I call him 'deadlast' or lie when I confessed to him in Iron Country? Why did I not see his kindness or his love sooner? Why? Why? Why? I don't deserve him_.'

"Having another night time issue again, Sakura?" Naruto surprised her as he took a seat next to her. When this first happened some years ago when they first started dating, it had caused Sakura some discomfort. But now, since it was a regular occurrence between the two, Sakura had come to expect it from him and left sometimes left Naruto to the point of agony why she continued to do this, even when he told her numerous times that he had forgiven her a long time ago.

"When can you let this go Sakura?" Naruto asked as he took her into his lap and rested his head against her shoulder. "You know that it's in the past."

"I still feel guilty about everything I did to you. Not seeing how kind you were and still are but instead joining the pack of people who insulted you or hurt. I'm no better than anyone whose hurt you." she answered back, holding back her tears.

"Sakura, everyone makes mistakes, we're all human. Not everyone understands what they fear or what they don't know. All great people in history have had to gone through adversity, through hell, like I have. I've wanted to achieve something great, and I still have to in order to fulfill one of my dreams because it's part of the journey." he tried to explain to her.

"But I was supposed to be smarter than this, I was supposed to see you for who you were, not how everyone else saw you." she answered back, shaking at those thoughts.

"Sakura…" Naruto spoke, turning her head to face him. "You were an innocent child that was under the influence of adults who simply misjudged me, who in turn did the same to their children. You and I weren't mature enough to understand why they hated me. That was just how it was." Naruto gave her a chaste kiss and held her in his embrace.

"But…but…but…" Sakura tried to answer into his chest.

"Sakura, it isn't like you can who you were…or who are now. You still tease me or hit me when I do something I shouldn't have. At least I now have some common sense and think things through." he replied back as he rubbed her back gently.

"But you don't deserve what I do to you, not after all you've suffered through." she answered back, trying in vain to convince him that he didn't deserve her. "Why didn't you go to Hinata when she confessed her love for you? Why didn't you go to her when she deserved you when I didn't?"

"Because I didn't love her the way I love you. To me, you are someone of great mystery." Naruto replied back. Sakura lifted her head from his shoulder and gave me a baffled looked of confusion.

"What do you mean 'of great mystery'?" she asked waringly.

"Sakura…I'm probably going to get killed for this, but I'm going to be blunt. You're someone who can have great compassion for anyone and anything, but you are also someone who can unleash a fury of pain and anger if they steer you the wrong way." he answered, hoping for as little damage as possible.

"WHAT? I'M NOT LIKE THAT ALL!" Sakura screamed. However, after giving that type of response, she almost immediately gasped and covered her mouth with her hand, blush streaking across her face. "Oh my god, I _am_like that. Even when I thought that I had some of my temper replenished, it still shows up without me realizing it."

Naruto simply chuckled at her response. "But that's what keeps us together. It's what keeps our relationship so intriguing. My lovable stupidity and stubbornness against your compassion and ferocity is something that can keep us going for the rest of our lives."

Sakura smiled at his words.

"Guess I still have a ways to go before I completely gain control of my anger, don't I?" Sakura asked him slightly ashamed.

"Don't worry too much about it. I don't think my mother ever had a grip on her temper either from what Kakashi and Tsunade told me." Naruto grasped her hands gently. "But I wouldn't change it for anything."

His words caused Sakura to push him on his back and start a passionate make out session and show him how much she truly loved him…only for it to be interpreted by a cough a few feet away.

"You two really love to go at it don't you?" Kara asked sarcastically with a smug smile on her face. Naruto and Sakura both looked up to give her a glare but understood that they shouldn't have left her like that. "You two really need to work on your parenting before you have kids."

"And you know way too much to be an eight year old." Naruto answered back with a flat tone.

"Hey, when you live on the streets, you pick up a lot of things." Kara responded back as she sat beside the two lovers.

"Very true, very true." Naruto answered back as he lifted Sakura and himself up into a sitting position. Sakura sat to Naruto's right side, her arms wrapped around his. "Kara, come over here." Naruto motioned with his left hand to sit with him and Sakura. Kara gladly accepted the invitation and sat next to Naruto, leaning onto him.

Naruto wondered what it would be like to have family of his own many times, taking care of his sons and daughters beside his wife, whom he had always envisioned to be Sakura. As he looked to his right and then to his left, he could only imagine it to be like this, where everything was calm but also anticipation of what would happen next.

He was not sure what would happen with this little girl but decided that he would put off until the morning where he could speak with Tsunade about her future. Right now, he would enjoy the time that he was having with Sakura and Kara.

* * *

"Well aren't you a cute one?" Tsunade asked Kara with smile on her face. Naruto and Sakura stood behind the child while Tsunade played with her.

"I'm not four years old you know." Kara tried to resist but failed when her smile was discovered.

"I know you're not four, but I always used to do this with my little brother when we were younger." Tsunade answered back, knowing that she would probably get a question that would hurt her in return. Tsunade though had learned to cope with that part of her life a long time ago.

"I bet he's glad you don't do this anymore." Kara answered back. It hurt Tsunade when she said that, but at least she didn't ask what happened to him, so she could at least avoid that pain.

"Yeah…he is." Tsunade answered, smile still planted on her face as she walked back to her seat. "Sakura, could you go ahead and take Kara with you back home. I need to speak to Naruto alone."

"Of course my lady, come on Kara, I'll buy you some ice cream on the way back." Sakura said as they left the room.

"Alright!" Kara shouted in joy as they left the room and shut the door. Naruto and Tsunade then stood for a few tense minutes before either of them spoke.

"Well Tsunade, is there anything we can do for her?" Naruto asked the reinstated Hokage, hoping for a slip of hope.

Tsunade sighed as she looked at her cup of tea with a look of discontent. "I'm sorry Naruto, but all I can do is give her a home in the orphanage and hope for the best. There's nothing I can really do other than that."

"That's bullshit and you know it!" Naruto slammed his fist on the desk.

"Naruto! Hold your tongue and do not speak to me that way! I may not be as strong as you now but I can still demote you." Tsunade responded in a sharp tone.

"Then you better get ready demote me! I'm not letting the same thing that happened to me happen to this little girl!" Naruto responded back, causing Tsunade to gasp in shock.

"Naruto…."

"You of all people know what it's like to have no parents but I know what it's like to not any family at all! I will not let this girl have no family."

"I'm sorry Naruto, but unless we can find her parents that are willing to take care of her then there isn't anything I can do." Tsunade remarked and regained her composure and then an idea popped into her head. "That is unless _you _want to take care of her."

Naruto did not respond but simply stared out the window. Tsunade looked at him with a worried look.

"Naruto?"

"I can't take of her because of what I am. I'm the container of the Nine-Tails. I already fear of what I could do to Sakura and that's hurting me enough, but what if I had the blood of a little girl on my hands as well as Sakura? I may have control of his power now, but I still fear what could happen. What would I be then if it happened?" Naruto asked, continuing to stare out the window. "I'd really be a monster."

Tsunade rose from her seat and stood next to him. "Naruto, you will never be a monster to us or the village anymore. We are forever in debt for what you've done for us. It amazes me to this day that you turned down the position of Hokage when we offered it to you last year."

"I told you, I wasn't ready for that position, I want to be able to protect this village and ever since that mission six months ago, my arm still isn't what it used to be and I've had to adjust my fighting style a little .I still want to advance as a shinobi, I still want to perfect my technique, to create and learn new jutsu. Plus, I still need to learn more about the politics of being Hokage and last I checked we still weren't done with that." Naruto answered back.

"You're right, but we've gone over almost everything that we can, I really don't have much left to teach you." Tsunade replied.

"To be honest with you, if someone told that I could save more lives as a spy, like Jiraiya was, than as Hokage, then I'd gladly take it if it meant protecting these people." Naruto replied. "I'll be Hokage one day, but right now, I know I need to learn more, to be better prepared, but I will become Hokage."

'_Wow….Naruto, you really are one in a million.'_

"Naruto…I know this is hard but listen, there really isn't anything I can do…"

"Fuck it…if you can't do anything, then I will. If she's going to the orphanage, then I'll take my chances I'll take care of her and raise her like my own." Naruto answered back in a low and serious tone. "I'm not letting her live like that. If she wants to be a ninja, then I'll train her. If she wants to be a teacher, then I'll help her anyway I can, but she is not staying in that hell hole." With that Naruto turned and began to leave Tsunade's office.

"Naruto…wait." Tsunade replied with sadness in her voice.

"What is it Tsunade?" Naruto asked as he turned around. His answer was a warm embrace from Tsunade as she cried into his shoulder. Naruto was surprised to say the least.

"Naruto, you will never hurt any of us. You are not a monster and you never will be." Tsunade said as she held onto him for dear life. "I only wish I could have taken care of you."

"Then why didn't you….if you knew who my parents were? Why didn't you and Jiraiya take care of me if you knew who I was and what my mother and father meant to me? Why didn't you do that for me?" Naruto asked in vain.

Now Tsunade was really hurt.

"Because of that damn council Naruto, that's why we couldn't do anything. I left because of my own selfish reasons because I was hurt by my own loses and couldn't live with that, but I should have stayed and watched over you. Jiraiya couldn't do anything except watch you from afar and even then he never did anything either. We're both at fault and we're both sorry, even if Jiraiya can't say it himself." Tsunade explained. "We've had this conversation before."

"It still doesn't help me get over it." Naruto responded back.

"I know Naruto. I know, I can only hope that you forgive us all." Tsunade spoke into his shoulder. She felt two arms wrap themselves around her back.

"I already did, but I still find it hard to forget it and move on. I tell Sakura the same thing but then I can't move on myself, I guess that makes me a hypocrite." Naruto answered as his rest his head on Tsunade's. "But you're still the mother I never had, nothing will change that."

Tsunade felt warm pour into her heart finally, and she could feel relieved at last. "Thank you Naruto. Thank you." The two 'siblings' then separated. "Listen, go ahead and take care of Kara like she was your own….like Jiraiya and I should've done." She encouraged as Naruto walked over to the window.

"You draw up the paperwork, and even if you didn't, I'd still take care of her anyway." Naruto laughed. "See you later." With that Naruto leapt out onto the roof tops. Tsunade simply looked out the window and laughed.

'_You forgive your loved ones way too easy sometimes Naruto. But that's what we love about you.'_

* * *

"WHAT? YOU'RE GOING TO TAKE CARE OF HER?" Sakura yelled after Naruto explained the updated situation.

"Yeah, so? I think I'm capable of it." Naruto answered back calmly while sitting on the couch. "And maybe you should lower your voice. Kara is still asleep you know."

"Naruto, you're barely nineteen years old…."

"So are you." He answered right back. Sakura groaned at his reponse.

"That's not the point Naruto. You're still young yourself and you still can't take care of yourself." she tried to explain.

"I understand that, which is why I want to ask you something." Naruto requested, now standing up from his couch and if front of Sakura.

"What is it? It better be something good because I'm in a pretty pissed off mood right now." Sakura retorted, arms crossed. She wasn't expecting what Naruto did next. He wrapped his arms around her frame and whispered a question into her ear.

"Will you move in with me?"

Sakura almost melted in his arms. Her anger had receded and was replaced by warmth and longing, as though she had wanted this for a long time. But something was still on her mind.

"Are you doing this because of Kara?"

"No, I was going to ask you a few days ago, on our date, but Kara….complicated things. But I've never been surer of my question, and I assume you're agreeing?" Naruto asked. Sakura looked into his eyes, tears of joy coming from her eyes.

"Of course you idiot." Sakura answered back, wrapping her arms around his neck and giving him a tender kiss to his lips before they felt another presence with them.

"Why are you two so happy?" Kara asked from the doorway, yawning after waking up from her nap. Naruto and Sakura couldn't help but smile. Naruto let his hold on Sakura loosen before finally letting go and walking up to Kara.

"Kara…I promise you that you won't have to grow up the way I did." Naruto said as he kneeled down in front of her. "Kara, I will always take care of you. I hope that you will let do that…my daughter."

Kara broke down as she knew what he was talking about. She ran up and hugged her new daddy with all the might she could. She had wanted some to do this for a long time, and finally, someone did just that.

"Sakura, don't miss out on this, she's your daughter too." Naruto spoke but not turning his head around. Sakura felt joy rush through her body as she moved over and joined the embrace.

"Wait, she's adopting me too?" Kara asked as she looked at the two.

"Well, since we're moving together, I guess that mean she is." Naruto chuckled as he hugged Kara again. Sakura looked on, not sure if this was a wise decision to tackle something like this, especially since she didn't know much about parenting.

But she was sure that with her smarts and Naruto's streak of doing the impossible, she was sure that they would give this girl the home and life she deserved and that she would be a great person once she left. Then that left her with just one thought that she always think of at some point in her days

'_Naruto, you really are one in a million.'_

* * *

**A/N: I feel like I had to update this because there were some problems with how it originally came out, so I updated it. And for those that don't know what a kunzite is, it's a pink to lilac colored gemstone. I thought it was appropriate to use to describe Sakura in Naruto's eyes. Anyway, hope you enjoyed it and I'll update some of my other stories soon.**


End file.
